by Lenox Cramer; Alpha Publications, 1986, 197 pgs 

War With Empty Hands (subtitled: Self-Defense Against Aggression) is a pretty good hardcore martial arts manual, comparable to La Tourrette’s Mental Training of a Warrior. I say "pretty good" because it neglects to discuss the essential topics of awareness and avoidance, does not consider retreat as an option, and recommends that one use high kicks in combat.

This book is heavy on training and technique, and is profusely illustrated. A few of the topics addressed include: targeting, balance, footwork, blocks, and evasion. Mister Cramer has gleaned his techniques from a variety of Oriental martial arts, and his methods have been tested in the field and proven to work, which makes this volume superior to the majority of the typical "martial-arts" and "self-defense" books you might find at Barnes & Nobel.

Instead of providing you with a selection of quotes, the final(fifteenth) segment of Chapter Four has been excerpted verbatim:

The Webs 

"Others often seek to bind the warrior with words when they cannot do so by other means; words that strike various response centers in those of the warrior’s spirit. These are the webs of deceit, woven by others, not things which arise from within a warrior such as the Four Sicknesses. Often the web is conditioned into us from our earliest years; a conditioning that is hard to fight.

To overcome this conditioning, one must begin by accepting the world as it is now. Religious philosophies aside, the world is a violent place full of both good and evil in varying degrees, often coexisting side-by-side. It is beautiful and savage at the same time. Things are not often "as they should be" nor as we might want them to be. Ideals should not be viewed as how things might be, but how things really are and how we could change them to be. This is the warrior’s motivation; to have a positive effect on destiny to bring the wrongs of the world into line with a certain idealism. Action in the pursuit of these goals is what the warrior strives for intuitively. If the world were the Utopia it might be, then warriors might not be needed; but the world is not and warriors are needed.

Loyalty — The concept of Loyalty is often abused by those who would have control over the actions of others. Loyalty for a warrior should be to his comrades, his kin, his leaders and nation. But the greatest loyalty for a warrior should be to his ideals. If the nation or his leaders ask something of him that is beyond the range of the warrior’s personal code of right and wrong, he is correct to refuse such an order. Further, he would be correct to work to correct the wrong, no matter the price to himself. As has happened too often throughout man’s history, warriors have been betrayed by their leaders, and by their civilians when the warriors did not follow their own ideals but the words of men. Weigh such things carefully before committing yourself to action. Fair words often harbor dark designs.

Loyalty to others does not require you to do their bidding, nor to be their slave. It means simply that you are their comrade through thick and thin, that you stand together no matter what popular opinion is; that you can rely on one another, despite the words of men.

Mercy — This is an ideal that is often used to weaken the ideals of a warrior. Mercy from the strong is natural. When a person is sure of his own abilities he has no need to prove himself to others, and he may show others mercy. This means to help the weak, the victims. When you are offered violence, this does not mean that you should concern yourself with the problems of the opponent. If he had a terrible childhood, if he is poor, these things are not your concern after he has attacked. The mental or economic straits of others are not your concern when they clearly show themselves to be your adversary.

In combat, when you are fighting an enemy force, there is no time for considering mercy either. After you have beaten them totally, mind and body, then is the time to consider how to treat them. Do not regard their losses during the heat of battle; if by havy losses to the enemy you ensure your own nation or family peace for years to come, you are justified.

One should show mercy to those that deserve it, starting with your own circle of kin or battle group, and if there is some left to go around after that, to your opponents. While your own need help, do not be concerned with the rest of the world. However, there is never a reason to be unnecessarily harsh or cruel.

Duty — Do not confuse duty with what others expect of you, for the two are utterly different. Duty is a debt you owe yourself to fulfill obligations and matters of honor that you have assumed voluntarily. Paying that debt can entail anything from years of patient work to an instant willingness to sacrifice your life. It may be difficult, but the reward is self-respect, and knowing that you have been true to your ideals.

But their is no reward for doing what others expect of you, just because it is expected. It is easier to deal with an assailant than it is with the psychological vampires who want "just a moment of your time please . . . it won’t take very long." Time is the total capital of your life and the minutes are painfully few, so those who seek to waste your time are actually stealing it from you. By simply saying NO you will not be burdened with that type of parasitism. However, this by no means suggests that you can or should not help a comrade, or even a stranger. Just do not let them become a burden around your neck. While it may be your duty to give a comrade a hand, it is not your duty to carry him on your back the rest of your life. Let the choice of action be yours and not what any group or individual seems to think is right. If a group or individual is right, sometimes a deluge of opinions tends to push one away from the truth, so thought must be given to this.

Honor — For the person that wishes to become a warrior, to walk the often solitary path, the decision must be based on a belief that there is no other way of life worth living, including the ethos that goes with it. This becomes a pact you make with yourself. Part of this ethos is the concept of personal honor, something that is intangible, one of the webs woven by those around us at times, but also something that we must have ourselves. You must work out your own honor system for yourself. For the warrior it becomes a code, a way of life, unbending and unaltered, often without ant verbal guidelines. When all of your possessions are far from you, you will still have your honor, your core.

A handshake or simply saying, "I will do this," is your bond, more concrete than any signature on paper should be. Your actions demonstrate your code. To abuse your knowledge, betray a comrade, lie, things such as that, you will have broken your pact with yourself and have lost your honor. If you act in accordance with your beliefs as well as you can, you will retain your honor always.